9494076734255

and Tom last, which was according to Tom's orders. Now we was in the lean-to, and heard trampings
close by outside. So we crept to the door, and Tom stopped us there and put his eye to the crack, but
couldn't make out nothing, it was so dark; and whispered and said he would listen for the steps to get
further, and when he nudged us Jim must glide out first, and him last. So he set his ear to the crack and
listened, and listened, and listened, and the steps a-scraping around out there all the time; and at last
he nudged us, and we slid out, and stooped down, not breathing, and not making the least noise, and
slipped stealthy towards the fence in Injun file, and got to it all right, and me and Jim over it; but
Tom's britches catched fast on a splinter on the top rail, and then he hear the steps coming, so he had
to pull loose, which snapped the splinter and made a noise; and as he dropped in our tracks and
started somebody sings out:
"Who's that? Answer, or I'll shoot!"
But we didn't answer; we just unfurled our heels and shoved. Then there was a rush, and a BANG,
BANG, BANG! and the bullets fairly whizzed around us! We heard them sing out:
"Here they are! They've broke for the river! After 'em, boys, and turn loose the dogs!"
So here they come, full tilt. We could hear them because they wore boots and yelled, but we didn't
wear no boots and didn't yell. We was in the path to the mill; and when they got pretty close on to us
we dodged into the bush and let them go by, and then dropped in behind them. They'd had all the dogs
shut up, so they wouldn't scare off the robbers; but by this time somebody had let them loose, and here
they come, making powwow enough for a million; but they was our dogs; so we stopped in our tracks
till they catched up; and when they see it warn't nobody but us, and no excitement to offer them, they
only just said howdy, and tore right ahead towards the shouting and clattering; and then we up-steam
again, and whizzed along after them till we was nearly to the mill, and then struck up through the bush
to where my canoe was tied, and hopped in and pulled for dear life towards the middle of the river,
but didn't make no more noise than we was obleeged to. Then we struck out, easy and comfortable,
for the island where my raft was; and we could hear them yelling and barking at each other all up and
down the bank, till we was so far away the sounds got dim and died out. And when we stepped on to
the raft I says:
"NOW, old Jim, you're a free man again, and I bet you won't ever be a slave no more."
"En a mighty good job it wuz, too, Huck. It 'uz planned beautiful, en it 'uz done beautiful; en dey
ain't NOBODY kin git up a plan dat's mo' mixed-up en splendid den what dat one wuz."
We was all glad as we could be, but Tom was the gladdest of all because he had a bullet in the calf
of his leg.
When me and Jim heard that we didn't feel so brash as what we did before. It was hurting him
considerable, and bleeding; so we laid him in the wigwam and tore up one of the duke's shirts for to
bandage him, but he says:
"Gimme the rags; I can do it myself. Don't stop now; don't fool around here, and the evasion
booming along so handsome; man the sweeps, and set her loose! Boys, we done it elegant!—'deed we
did. I wish WE'D a had the handling of Louis XVI., there wouldn't a been no 'Son of Saint Louis,
ascend to heaven!' wrote down in HIS biography; no, sir, we'd a whooped him over the BORDER—
that's what we'd a done with HIM—and done it just as slick as nothing at all, too. Man the sweeps—
man the sweeps!"
But me and Jim was consulting—and thinking. And after we'd thought a minute, I says:
"Say it, Jim."
So he says:
"Well, den, dis is de way it look to me, Huck. Ef it wuz HIM dat 'uz bein' sot free, en one er de